Nexus Standards · Open standards development · Records and schemas

Open standards development

Open standards development: records and schemas

How the artifacts of open standards development are identified, described and resolved: the scope, the record, the categories, the schemas and the catalog entries of the applicable standards, each keyed by a UNI (Unique Nexus Identifier).

Back to Open standards developmentAll programme areas
01Instrument

Read a UNI.

Type or paste a Uniform Nexus Identifier: each segment is decoded against grammar 0.2 and the region, when it names a country, is lit on the globe above.

02Canvas

The process.

Record explorer · schema, example, crosswalkNexus Standards registry

Nexus artifact record (NS-1) · 32 fields · 12 required

  • uni required stringThe UNI (Unique Nexus Identifier), NS-1 grammar, without @version.
  • displayAlias stringPublic Nexus Registry short form (NX-R-47092) shown next to the UNI during the transition.
  • registryState enumPublic registry state; corrections keep the UNI and add a version.
  • legacyUni stringDotted UNI v0 this record replaces, for crosswalk (for example data.eo.stac.catalogue).
  • title required string
  • description string
  • scope required string
  • category required string
  • region string
  • domain stringDOMAIN segment code from registry/domains.yaml (NS-1 v0.2); present when the identifier carries it.
  • sector stringSECTOR segment code from registry/sectors.yaml (NS-1 v0.2).
  • environment enumENV segment code (NS-1 v0.2).
  • contextName stringNS-16 context name: the identifier without CAT and SERIAL; derived, never allocated.
  • systemId stringFunctional system class id (systemId) from registry/nexus-standards.yaml#scopes when scope is a SYSTEM.
  • status required enum
  • currentVersion string
  • versions array
    • version string
    • date string
    • gitSha string
    • digest string
    • note string
  • creators required array
    • name string
    • type enum
    • affiliation string
    • orcid string
    • ror string
  • publisherRef required stringEntity reference of the publishing institution (registry/governance.yaml#bodies); the institution stays publisher of record for institutional artifacts.
  • publicationDate required string
  • language string
  • keywords array
  • rights required object
    • license stringSPDX licence identifier or expression, or a LicenseRef- string for a licence that has no SPDX identifier.
    • rightsHolderRef string
    • accessRight enum
    • embargoDate string
  • legalState required enum
  • claimCeiling required enum
  • locations required array
    • kind enum
    • value string
    • digest string
  • relatedIdentifiers array
    • relation enum
    • identifier string
    • identifierType enum
  • supersededBy string
  • workPackageId string
  • directiveRefs arrayReferences to the recorded decisions or policies under which the artifact was produced.
  • notes string
  • context objectNS-9: this record is a deployment, instance or programme instance of the concept ofUni, in a context.
    • ofUni string
    • domains arrayids from registry/domains.yaml
    • sectors arrayids from registry/sectors.yaml
    • jurisdictions array
    • hostRef string
    • environment enum
    • validFrom string
    • validUntil string
    • conformsTo arrayNexus Standard ids and registry/external-standards.yaml ids this context claims; evidence per NS-11

Example record · NXS-STD-ST-000001

{ "uni": "NXS-STD-ST-000001", "title": "Nexus Standards NS-1 - the UNI and artifact catalog", "scope": "STD", "category": "ST", "status": "DRAFT", "currentVersion": "0.1.0", "creators": [ { "name": "Global Centre for Risk and Innovation (GCRI)", "type": "Organizational" } ], "publisherRef": "GCRI", "publicationDate": "2026-10-15", "rights": { "license": "CC-BY-4.0", "accessRight": "open" }, "legalState": "LEGAL_REVIEW_REQUIRED", "claimCeiling": "INTEGRATED", "locations": [ { "kind": "repoPath", "value": "standards/NS-1-identifier-and-artifact-catalog.md" }, { "kind": "repoPath", "value": "registry/nexus-standards.yaml" } ], "workPackageId": "LEGAL-NAME-ARCHITECTURE-001" }
Field crosswalk: Schema.org JSON-LD, DataCite, Zenodo, CodeMeta
Record fieldSchema.orgDataCiteZenodoCodeMetaSource
uniidentifier (PropertyValue, propertyID urn:nexus:uni)alternateIdentifier (alternateIdentifierType NXS)metadata.related_identifiers[] (scheme other)identifierdraft
titlenametitles[].titlemetadata.titlenamedraft
descriptiondescriptiondescriptions[].description (Abstract)metadata.descriptiondescriptiondraft
scope·subjects[] (subjectScheme nexus-scope)metadata.keywords[]·draft
categoryadditionalTypetypes.resourceTypeGeneralmetadata.upload_type / publication_type / image_typeapplicationCategoryregistry
regionspatialCoveragegeoLocations[].geoLocationPlacemetadata.locations[]·draft
statuscreativeWorkStatus··developmentStatusdraft
currentVersionversionversionmetadata.versionversiondraft
versions·relatedIdentifiers (IsNewVersionOf, IsPreviousVersionOf)versions (concept DOI)·draft
creatorscreator / authorcreators[]metadata.creators[]authordraft
publisherRefpublisherpublishermetadata.publisher (Zenodo)publisherdraft
publicationDatedatePublishedpublicationYear; dates[] (Issued)metadata.publication_datedatePublisheddraft
languageinLanguagelanguagemetadata.language·draft
keywordskeywordssubjects[]metadata.keywords[]keywordsdraft
rights.licenselicenserightsList[].rightsIdentifier (SPDX)metadata.licenselicensedraft
rights.accessRightconditionsOfAccess·metadata.access_right·draft
legalState····draft
claimCeiling····draft
locationsurl / contentUrl / codeRepositoryalternateIdentifiers[] (URL)files[] / metadata.related_identifiers[]codeRepository / downloadUrldraft
relatedIdentifiersisPartOf / citation / isBasedOnrelatedIdentifiers[] (relationType)metadata.related_identifiers[]isPartOf / referencePublicationdraft
supersededBy·relatedIdentifiers[] (IsObsoletedBy)metadata.related_identifiers[] (isObsoletedBy)·draft
workPackageId····draft
directiveRefs·relatedIdentifiers[] (References)metadata.related_identifiers[] (references)·draft
context····draft

Rows marked registry are taken from the category mappings to Zenodo and DataCite in the registry; rows marked draft are an editorial mapping to the public schemas and are not part of the registry.

Record explorerschemas/nexus-artifact-record.v1.json with example records from the standards catalog (scope STD). A record describes an artifact and its provenance.

03Identifier

Identifiers under scope STD

STD is the cross cutting scope The Nexus Standards themselves. An artifact of this area is identified as NXS-STD-<CAT>-<SERIAL>, with an optional region segment for regional artifacts; serials are allocated only by the catalog.

UNI anatomy · parse, resolve, citeNexus Standards registry
prefixNXSfixedscope<SCOPE>32 codescat<CAT>38 artifact, 9 record codesregion<REGION>ISO 3166-1 or M49serial<SERIAL>six digits, allocatedversion@<VERSION>semver or record version
NXS-STD-ST-000001NXS-EWS-DS-KEN-000003NXS-GRX-RP-M002-000007@1.2.0NXS-GRX-OB-KEN-000042@3NXS-GCR-AR-000015

Illustrative identifier pattern. With script enabled, a UNI can be entered and each segment is checked against the registry, resolved to its record where one is published, and expressed as a URN, a resolver link and a citation.

UNI anatomyThe NS-1 grammar segment by segment, with the scope and category codes of the registry. Resolution links to the resolver; no identifier is allocated on this page.

The form above is a pattern; codes classify artifacts and are not product names.

04Canvas

Record lifecycle.

Canvas · record lifecycleProcess diagram
Open standards development: an artifact from minting to citationHow an artifact in this area receives its UNI under scope STD, carries it on every surface and resolves to its record, following the steps that NS-1, NS-2, NS-3b, NS-6 and NS-7 specify.

Fig.The life cycle of a record from allocation to citation, as specified by NS-1, NS-2, NS-3b, NS-6 and NS-7.

05Earth observation

Population, settlement and hazards in the Horn of Africa

The map frames the Horn of Africa as an example geography for open standards development; the frame gives context and is not a statement of where the standards apply. Shown at first: population density, 2020 (Gridded Population of the World v4.11, NASA SEDAC, CIESIN, Columbia University) and night-time lights, daily (VIIRS Black Marble, VNP46A2, NASA LAADS DAAC). The layer drawer adds flood water, 3-day composite (VIIRS Global Flood Product); active fires and thermal anomalies, last day (VIIRS NOAA-20 375 m, FIRMS); and true colour (VIIRS NOAA-20 corrected reflectance). NASA products are served through NASA GIBS under NASA's open data policy, with acknowledgement; population density is GPW v4.11 by CIESIN, Columbia University, under CC BY 4.0; coastlines, boundaries and place names come from NASA GIBS reference layers (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL) and Natural Earth (public domain). Each layer shows its own observation date; full credits are given under the map. Other sources of the profile, such as IETF Datatracker API and W3C technical reports feed, are listed for reference.

The interactive map needs JavaScript; the layer list and sources are below.

Layers 2

People and hazards

Latest available

NASA GIBS / EOSDIS · ASTER GDEM (METI, NASA) · Blue Marble (NASA) · © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL) · Natural Earth

Loading the latest NASA imagery.

Drag to move. Ctrl or ⌘ and scroll, pinch or the buttons to zoom; hover for the values under the pointer; reset returns to the region.

Where people live, night-time lights and the floods and fires public institutions answer to, framed on the Horn of Africa.Satellite and model products as NASA publishes them, each with its own date; indicators, not assessments of any place.

Data: NASA GIBS · ASTER GDEM · Blue Marble · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Natural Earth · NASA EONETSources and licences

  • We acknowledge the use of imagery provided by services from NASA's Global Imagery Browse Services (GIBS), part of NASA's Earth Science Data and Information System (ESDIS). Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). NASA open data
  • We acknowledge the use of imagery provided by services from NASA's Global Imagery Browse Services (GIBS), part of NASA's Earth Science Data and Information System (ESDIS). Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). NASA open data
  • Center for International Earth Science Information Network (CIESIN), Columbia University. 2018. Gridded Population of the World, Version 4 (GPWv4): Population Density, Revision 11. NASA Socioeconomic Data and Applications Center (SEDAC). Licensed under CC BY 4.0. Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). doi:10.7927/H49C6VHW. CC BY 4.0
  • VIIRS Black Marble night-time lights, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center; distributed by the NASA Level-1 and Atmosphere Archive and Distribution System (LAADS DAAC); imagery via NASA GIBS. Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). NASA open data
  • VIIRS near-real-time products (flood, land surface temperature, snow cover, corrected reflectance), NASA LANCE; imagery via NASA GIBS. Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). NASA open data
  • NASA Fire Information for Resource Management System (FIRMS), VIIRS 375 m active fire product, NASA LANCE; vector tiles via NASA GIBS. Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). NASA open data
  • ASTER GDEM is a product of METI and NASA (ASTER Global Digital Elevation Model V003, NASA LP DAAC); imagery via NASA GIBS. Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). Cite as: NASA/METI/AIST/Japan Spacesystems and U.S./Japan ASTER Science Team (2019). ASTER Global Digital Elevation Model V003. doi:10.5067/ASTER/ASTGTM.003. NASA open data
  • Made with Natural Earth. Free vector and raster map data @ naturalearthdata.com. Public domain
  • © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), via NASA GIBS (coastlines, boundaries, roads and place names). Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). ODbL
  • Blue Marble, NASA Earth Observatory; imagery via NASA GIBS. Colours redrawn from the published colour map; values averaged into H3 cells where shown (modified). NASA open data
  • Context on the globe and flat map: coastlines, boundaries, roads and place names from NASA GIBS reference layers (OpenStreetMap data, ODbL, © OpenStreetMap contributors); Blue Marble imagery as an optional base; 3D terrain and the elevation read-out from the ASTER GDEM elevation colour index (5 m to 200 m classes, exaggerated for legibility). Boundaries are drawn as published and imply no position on any territory.
  • Globe: MapLibre GL JS 6.9.1, BSD-3-Clause, © MapLibre contributors.
  • Live: NASA EONET Events are indicative, not authority warnings.
  • NASA GIBS: We acknowledge the use of imagery provided by services from NASA's Global Imagery Browse Services (GIBS), part of NASA's Earth Science Data and Information System (ESDIS).
  • Optional layers (3 sources in the layer list: live, forecast, observed and context) print their provider credit on the map and here when switched on; forecasts are model output and derived indices are estimates.

Layers and dates

  • Population density, 2020: Population: CIESIN, Columbia University, Gridded Population of the World v4.11 (2018), NASA SEDAC, CC BY 4.0 · static
  • Night-time lights, daily: VIIRS Black Marble (VNP46A2), NASA LAADS DAAC · 12 Oct 2026
  • Flood water, 3-day composite: VIIRS Global Flood Product, NASA LANCE · 14 Oct 2026
  • Active fires and thermal anomalies, last day: VIIRS NOAA-20 375 m (FIRMS), NASA LANCE FIRMS · 13 Oct 2026
  • True colour: VIIRS NOAA-20 corrected reflectance, NASA LANCE · 13 Oct 2026

06The record

Content of a catalog record

Field setValues
Required fieldsuni, title, scope, category, status, creators, publisherRef, publicationDate, rights, legalState, claimCeiling, locations
StatusesDRAFT, PUBLISHED, SUPERSEDED, WITHDRAWN
Rights statesLEGAL_REVIEW_REQUIRED, APPROVED, RESTRICTED, PROHIBITED
Assurance levelsFIXTURE_VERIFIED, IMPLEMENTATION_COMPLETE, INTEGRATED, LAB_OBSERVED
07Embedding

Embedding of the UNI in the artifact

SurfaceHow
sourceFileheader comment: Nexus-UNI: <uni>
markdownfront matter uni: or first line Nexus-UNI: <uni>
datasetmetadata sidecar <file>.uni.json with the record, or a uni key in STAC or DataCite metadata
figurecaption suffix [<uni>] and image metadata
httpApiresponse header X-Nexus-UNI: <uni>
htmlPage<meta name="nexus-uni" content="<uni>"> and data-nexus-uni on the component root
cmscontent metadata field _nexus_uni (validated), rendered as the nexus-uni meta tag and the X-Nexus-UNI header
panelevery projected record carries uni in the panel's provenance and links it to the resolver
08Record kinds

Record kinds and artifact categories

Artifacts use categories mapped to Zenodo and DataCite resource types; records of the data fabric use record kinds (NS-3). The two lists share no code.

CodeRecord kind (NS-3)
OBObservation fact
SRSource release
INIndicator definition
MEMeasure definition
BDBoundary version
CTChronotope version
CRCorrection record
APAnalytical product record
SUSubject (place, asset, organisation)
09Schemas

Machine-readable schemas

  • nexus-artifact-record.v1.json
  • nexus-attestation.v1.json
  • nexus-clause.v1.json
  • nexus-policy.v1.json
  • nexus-proposal.v1.json
  • nexus-subject-passport.v1.json
10Catalog

Catalog entries of the applicable standards

Records in the standards scope, with their status and rights state.

UNITitleCategoryStatusRights state
NXS-STD-ST-000004Nexus Standards NS-0 - constitution and principlesSTdraftlegal review required
NXS-STD-ST-000008Nexus Standards NS-13 - open standards development processSTdraftlegal review required
11Questions

Questions and answers.

Who allocates UNIs for open standards development artifacts?
The catalog responsible for scope STD, through the reference command-line tool. Serials are not entered by hand (NS1-R2).
What does the resolver return?
An HTML landing page for browsers or JSON for machines, for published records that are not restricted (NS-7).
NRNexus Reports gateway · GW-STD

Contribute to Nexus Reports from this page.

Nexus Reports is the Consortium's quarterly publication. What you know about this subject can become evidence, a case or a correction in the next edition, credited to you and published under CC BY 4.0 where it is your own work.

Nexus Standards

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Across the Consortium

The same subject across the Consortium.

Related

Around Open standards development.

Nexus Standards

Shape the standards for open standards development.

Governments, regulators, standards bodies, industry, academia and communities are invited to shape the catalogue ahead of its first official release, targeted for 2030: comment on a draft, propose a change, join a working group or host a field exercise.

Propose a change Roadmap to 2030Adopt and implement

Status and use. The Nexus Standards are proposed standards developed through an open process under NS-13 and published for voluntary use; they do not constitute certification, accreditation or regulatory approval, and adoption remains a decision of the Global Standards Council and, in each country, of its National Standards Council. A UNI (Unique Nexus Identifier) identifies an artifact; it does not certify it. Names of standards bodies and their standards belong to their stewards and are used only to identify the documents; no text of an external standard is reproduced here. Nexus Standards is not affiliated with, endorsed by or certified by any standards body named here.

Licences: CC BY 4.0 for standards text, registries, schemas and data; Apache-2.0 for reference code. External standards are cited by name, number and link under their own licences. Third-party data, libraries and fonts keep their own licences: see Third-party notices.

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